Folding rack

ABSTRACT

A folding rack including frames that have a mounting element hinged to a support element, cross-support elements between the frames, and at least one brace that defines the unfolded angle between the mounting element and the support element. Optionally, the cross-supports include telescoping segments, thereby making the length of the cross-supports adjustable.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to storage systems and devices.Specifically, the present invention relates to a folding rack,optionally adjustable in length.

BACKGROUND

There exist many devices directed to storage and assistance withstorage. For example, there exist many different types of shelves,lockers, racks, and the like. Nevertheless, there are situations wheresuspended storage devices are not optimum for the consumer. For example,there are some situations where a lighter storage rack may be desired.Similarly, there are situations where, for convenience, space, or otherconsiderations, it is desirable that a storage device be configured in aspace-saving configuration when not in use.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The following presents a simplified summary in order to provide a basicunderstanding of some aspects of the claimed subject matter. Thissummary is not an extensive overview, and is not intended to identifykey/critical elements or to delineate the scope of the claimed subjectmatter. Its purpose is to present some concepts in a simplified form asa prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later.

In one aspect of various exemplary embodiments, a rack for placingarticles is provided, the rack comprising: at least a first frame and asecond frame each comprising, at least one mounting element, at leastone support element, and at least one hinge coupling the at least onemounting element to the at least one support element; and at least onecross-support connected to the first frame and to the second frame,wherein the at least one cross-support includes at least a first segmentand a second segment, whereby the second segment is engaged to the firstsegment in a telescoping relationship, the first segment of the at leastone cross-support being attached to the first frame, and the secondsegment of the at least one cross-support attached to the second framesuch that the distance between the first frame and the second frame maybe selectively determined by varying the length of said cross-support.

In one aspect of various exemplary embodiments, a rack for placingarticles is provided, the rack comprising: at least a first frame and asecond frame each comprising, at least one mounting element, at leastone support element, at least one brace coupling the at least onemounting element to the at least one support element, and at least onehinge coupling the at least one mounting element to the at least onesupport element; at least one cross-support connected to the first frameand to the second frame, wherein the at least one cross-support includesat least a first segment and a second segment, whereby the secondsegment is engaged to the first segment in a telescoping relationship,the first segment of the at least one cross-support being attached tothe first frame, and the second segment of the at least onecross-support attached to the second frame such that the distancebetween the first frame and the second frame may be selectivelydetermined by varying the length of said cross-support; and at least onefastener securing the at least one mounting element of the first frameand the second frame to a surface.

In one aspect of various exemplary embodiments, a rack for placingarticles is provided, the rack comprising: means for placing articles onthe rack; means for folding the rack; means for adjusting the rack tofit different sized articles; means for removably mounting the rack to asurface; means for bracing the rack when in an unfolded position; andmeans for securing the rack at predetermined angle relative to amounting surface when unfolded.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an exemplary embodiment folding rack.

FIG. 2 is a side view of an exemplary embodiment folding rack.

FIG. 3 is front view of an exemplary embodiment folding rack.

FIG. 4 is top view of an exemplary embodiment folding rack.

FIG. 5 is perspective view of another exemplary embodiment folding rack,in the folded state.

FIG. 6 is perspective view of the exemplary embodiment folding rack inFIG. 5, in a partially unfolded state.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating a resistance member to alterthe difficulty of opening or closing the folding rack.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view illustrating a tubular cushion forpreventing damage to articles place on the folding rack.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view illustrating a flat plank on the foldingrack.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Applicant's patents are directed to suspended storage devices, U.S. Pat.Nos. 6,435,105, 6,715,427, and 7,152,535 and U.S. Design Pat. Nos.459,926 and 470,353, the contents of which are all incorporated hereinby reference in its entirety.

In the following detailed descriptions of various exemplary embodiments,reference is made to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof,and in which is shown, by way of illustration, specific embodiments thatmay be practiced. It is to be understood that other embodiments may beutilized and structural changes may be made without departing from thescope of the present disclosure.

Reference is now made to the figures wherein like parts are referred toby like numerals throughout. The present disclosure describes a foldingrack 100 that is mountable to a surface 200. It is contemplated that thesurface 200 may be a vertical surface, horizontal surface, or angledsurface. For example, a rack 100 could be mounted to a wall, ceiling,floor, or the like. As discussed in greater detail below, the rack 100may serve as a rack to hold and store object or may support a panel (notshown) to provide a shelf, work surface, table, or the like.

Referring to FIGS. 1-6, an exemplary embodiment may include a first sideframe 102 and a second side frame 104. The side frames 102, 104 may beformed from square tubing, although it is contemplated that the sideframes may have any construction such as U-channel, round tubing, flatbar, solid bar, and so forth. Each side frame includes a mountingelement 108 and a support element 106. Put simply, the mounting element108 may be mounted to a surface while the support element 106 maysupport articles placed on or hung from the rack 100.

Another embodiment may include other frames in addition to the sideframes 102, 104 to accommodate heavier articles. These additional framesmay be substantially similar to frames 102, 104 and may be placedbetween the side frames 102, 104 or outside the side frames 102, 104.

The mounting element 108 and support element 106 may be hinged to oneanother. In an exemplary embodiment, a pin (not shown) may connect themounting element 108 and the support element 106, with the pin acting asthe hinge.

In another embodiment, a separate hinge 110 may be provided to joinmounting element 108 and support element 106. In such an embodiment, thehinge 110 may allow relative pivoting between the mounting element 108and support element 106.

In any case, the hinged relationship between the mounting element 108and support element 106 may permit the support frames 102, 104 to befolded between two or more configurations (unfolded, folded, and anyposition between) to, for example, conserve space when the rack 100 isnot in use and provide a storage surface when the rack 100 is in use.Thus, in FIGS. 1-6, the support element 106 may be folded toward themounting element 108 so that the rack 100 lies substantially flat whenit is not in use. In an alternate or additional optional embodiment, itis contemplated that the support element 106 could be folded away fromthe mounting element 108 so that the rack 100 lies substantially flatwhen it is not in use (i.e., rather than folding it back against themounting element 108, the support element 106 may be folded away fromthe mounting element 108 so that the side frame 102, 104 issubstantially linear).

In still another exemplary embodiment, the hinge 110 includes one ormore straps 111 connected to the mounting element 108 and the supportelement 106. The strap 111 may be sized to allow the support element 106to be folded onto the mounting element 108 so that the rack 100 liessubstantially flat as illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6.

Referring generally to FIGS. 1-6, in other embodiments, one or morebraces 112 may be provided. The brace 112 may be a bar, chain, rope,strap, and so forth. In an exemplary embodiment, the brace 112 may behinged to hold the support element 106 in a desired position when thesupport element 106 is in a use configuration, but still allow thesupport element 106 and mounting element 108 to be folded when the rack100 is not in use. In an alternate embodiment of the figures, the brace112 includes two hinged straps 111, comprised of substantially two equallengths that connect the mounting element 108 to the support element106.

In other embodiments, the brace 112 may couple to the mounting element108 and the support element 106 at a single point or multiple points.The coupling point may allow angular adjustment 126 between the mountingelement 108 and the support element 106.

In still other embodiments, the brace 112 may lock the support element106 in a use configuration and/or a stored configuration, or the brace112 may leave the support element 106 free to move betweenconfigurations without locking.

In yet other embodiments, a locking mechanism 124 may prevent the rack100 from unfolding by securing the mounting element 108 to the supportelement 106. As shown in FIG. 1, this locking mechanism 124 iscontemplated to be a deformable plastic latch, a pin, a spring loadedball engaging a hole, and so forth.

As shown in FIG. 1, at least one cross-support element 114 runs betweenthe side frames 102, 104. It is contemplated that the cross-supportelement 114 may be fixed in length or adjustable. In embodiments wherethe cross-support is linearly adjustable, many different methods toaccomplish adjustment are contemplated such as telescoping (tube withintube), stacked bars with more than one coupling point, threadedengagement, and so forth. For example, the rack 100 of FIGS. 1-6includes telescoping cross-supports 114 to adjust the distance betweenthe side frames 102, 104. In this manner, a rack 100 may provide asupport surface of varying length. For example, when used as a tirerack, the distance between the side frames 102, 104 may be adjusted toprovide for a range of quantities and sizes of tires. It is contemplatedthat the cross-support element 114 may be adjusted in discrete lengths,such as through defined stops 130, or continuously over a range oflengths such as using a threaded engagement.

In the exemplary embodiments of FIGS. 1-4, the cross-supports 114include a first segment 116 and a second segment 118, although anyquantity of segments may be utilized. As shown, the first segment 116and second segment 118 are connected in a telescoping relationship. Thatis, optionally, the first segment 116 and second segment 118 may mate,so that one segment fits at least partially into the other segment. Thelength of the cross-support element 114 (and consequently the distancebetween the side frames 102, 104) may be adjusted by sliding the firstsegment 116 into the second segment 118.

It is contemplated that in other embodiments, the quantity and shape ofcross-supports 114 may vary without departing from the spirit and scopeof this disclosure. For example, as shown in FIG. 9, a cross-supportelement 114 may be substantially planar or have a substantially planarsurface, rather than tubular or cylindrical as illustrated in thefigures. The planar cross-support, or cross-support with a planarsurface, may be adjusted by telescoping, sliding, or the like, or mayhave a fixed length.

In still other embodiments, the side frames 102, 104 may be connected tothe end of the cross-support elements 114. Specifically, it iscontemplated that the side frames 102, 104 may be spaced from the end ofthe cross-support elements 114. The coupling between the cross-supportelement 114 and the support element 106 may be fixed or have lateraladjustment 122 along the support element 106. This may be accomplishedthrough a slot in the support element 106 and a threaded rod protrudingfrom the end of the cross-support element 114, having a U-channel shapedsupport element 106 with the open end of the U facing the other sideframe, and so forth.

The mounting element 108 may be fixed to a surface 200, such as throughfasteners, adhesive, combinations of fasteners and adhesives, and soforth. For example, in an optional embodiment, the mounting element 108may include holes through which bolts 120 may be inserted or threaded,thereby connecting the mounting element 108 to a surface 200.

In another embodiment, the mounting element 108 may be mounted to asurface 200 through brackets (not shown) or the like. In thisembodiment, the brackets in the mounting element 108 may further mountto a surface 200 through a track (not shown) which receives the bracketsin a sliding relationship. In such an embodiment, the length of thecross-support element 114 may be adjusted, while the side frames 102,104 are mounted to a surface through the track, by sliding the bracketsattached to the mounting elements inside the track.

In still another embodiment, the brackets in the mounting element 108may be secured at a desired location within the track to maintain thelength of the cross-support element 114 and hold the side frames 102,104 in position.

In use, the length of the cross-support element 114 may be set and themounting element 108 may be secured to a surface 200, either directly orindirectly, such as through brackets (not shown) or the like. As notedabove, the surface 200 may be a wall, ceiling, shelving, storagecabinet, or the like. Alternatively, in an embodiment in which themounting element 108 is mounted to a surface 200 through a track (notshown), the length of the cross-support element 114 may be set aftermounting the side frames 102, 104 to the track. The support element 106of each side frame 102, 104 is positioned in its use configuration.Objects may be supported directly on the cross-support elements 114 andsupport elements 106 or, in an optional embodiment, support may beprovided by additional supporting members. For example, thecross-support elements 114 may serve to hold tires by placing the tiresdirectly onto the cross-supports 114 between the side frames 102, 104.Alternatively, a panel (not shown) may be positioned across thecross-supports 114 to provide a shelf, work surface, table, and soforth.

In other embodiments, for example as shown in FIG. 8, the cross-supportelements 114 and support elements 106 may have foam (or any other softmaterial) cushions 160, anti-slip materials, or both to prevent marringthe articles placed upon the rack 100 and to prevent articles fromsliding off the rack 100.

Moreover, multiple racks 100 may be mounted to a surface 200 and may beused in combination to support objects. For example, two or more racks100 may be mounted in a spaced relationship, with objects, such aselongate objects, laying across the cross-support elements 114 ofmultiple racks 100.

Turning now to FIG. 7, this is a perspective view illustrating aresistance member 150 to alter the difficulty of unfolding or foldingthe rack 100. The resistance member 150 may be a rotary spring, torsionspring, or the like and may be located between the mounting element 108and the support element 106. A linear compression or tension spring maybe used in still another embodiment and may also be located between themounting element 108 and the support element 106.

What has been described above includes examples of one or moreembodiments. It is, of course, not possible to describe everyconceivable combination of components or methodologies for purposes ofdescribing the aforementioned embodiments, but one of ordinary skill inthe art may recognize that many further combinations and permutations ofvarious embodiments are possible. Accordingly, the described embodimentsare intended to embrace all such alterations, modifications andvariations that fall within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.Furthermore, to the extent that the term “includes” is used in eitherthe detailed description or the claims, such term is intended to beinclusive in a manner similar to the term “comprising” as “comprising”is interpreted when employed as a transitional word in a claim.

What is claimed is:
 1. A folding rack comprising: at least a first frameand a second frame each comprising, at least one mounting element, atleast one support element, and at least one hinge coupling the at leastone mounting element to the at least one support element; and at leastone cross-support element connected to the first frame and to the secondframe, wherein the at least one cross-support element includes at leasta first segment and a second segment, whereby the second segment isengaged to the first segment in a telescoping relationship, the firstsegment of the at least one cross-support element being attached to thefirst frame, and the second segment of the at least one cross-supportelement attached to the second frame such that a distance between thefirst frame and the second frame may be selectively determined byvarying a length of the cross-support element.
 2. The folding rack ofclaim 1, further comprising at least one brace coupled to the at leastone support element, wherein when secured the brace governs an anglebetween the at least one support element and the at least one mountingelement.
 3. The folding rack of claim 1, further comprising a lockingelement preventing the at least one cross-support element fromtelescoping.
 4. The folding rack of claim 1, wherein the at least onesupport element further comprises at least one lateral adjustmentfeature for the at least one cross-support element.
 5. The folding rackof claim 1, further comprising at least one latch to secure the at leastone mounting element to the at least one support element when in afolded state.
 6. The folding rack of claim 1, further comprising atleast one resistance element to increase unfolding difficulty.
 7. Thefolding rack of claim 1, further comprising at least one cushioningelement to prevent damage to articles placed on the at least onecross-support element.
 8. The folding rack of claim 1, furthercomprising at least one anti-slip element to prevent articles placed onthe at least one cross-support element from sliding.
 9. A folding rackcomprising: at least a first frame and a second frame each comprising,at least one mounting element, at least one support element, at leastone brace coupling the at least one mounting element to the at least onesupport element, and at least one hinge coupling the at least onemounting element to the at least one support element; at least onecross-support element connected to the first frame and to the secondframe, wherein the at least one cross-support element includes at leasta first segment and a second segment, whereby the second segment isengaged to the first segment in a telescoping relationship, the firstsegment of the at least one cross-support element being attached to thefirst frame, and the second segment of the at least one cross-supportelement attached to the second frame such that the distance between thefirst frame and the second frame may be selectively determined byvarying the length of the cross-support element; and at least onefastener securing the at least one mounting element of the first frameand the second frame to a surface.
 10. The folding rack of claim 9,further comprising a locking element preventing the at least onecross-support element from telescoping.
 11. The folding rack of claim 9,wherein the at least one brace has an adjustable length.
 12. The foldingrack of claim 9, wherein the at least one mounting element furthercomprises more than one brace coupling point.
 13. The folding rack ofclaim 9, wherein the at least one support element further comprises atleast one lateral adjustment feature for the at least one cross-supportelement.
 14. The folding rack of claim 9, further comprising at leastone latch to secure the at least one mounting element to the at leastone support element when in a folded state.
 15. The folding rack ofclaim 9, further comprising at least one resistance element to increaseunfolding difficulty.
 16. The folding rack of claim 9, furthercomprising at least one panel disposed on the at least one cross-supportelement and resting on the at least one support element.
 17. The foldingrack of claim 8, further comprising at least one anti-slip element toprevent articles placed on the at least one cross-support element fromsliding.
 18. A folding rack comprising: means for placing articles onthe rack; means for folding the rack; means for adjusting the rack tofit different sized articles; means for removably mounting the rack to asurface; means for bracing the rack when in an unfolded position; andmeans for securing the rack at predetermined angle relative to amounting surface when unfolded.
 19. The folding rack of claim 18,further comprising means to removably latch the folding means.
 20. Thefolding rack of claim 18, further comprising means for cushioningarticles placed on the rack.